ANCIENT INDIA : RELIGION AND VARIOUS SANSKARS

         

    Isn't it  sad that how little we know of ancient India, our culture, heritage, achievements of our ancestors, genesis of our beliefs, and such like things. Unlike other religions of the world, we do not have the tradition of religion being spread like the 'Gospel'. Indians mostly believe that religion is a private affair and hence all must strive to learn it through their individual efforts. I remember when we were young, our grandparents used to tell us various aspects of our ancient scriptures, religious beliefs and other such things. Now, off course all this is a thing of past the parents or grand parents do not time to teach the children or grand children nor the children have the time or patience to listen to such "sermons". I am however sure that the youngster of today wants to know about ancient India. Googling is one such popular option which most children exercise.  I have made an attempt to collect and collate certain interesting details / aspects which I feel you would interest you. The details are in random order.

 Ancient India When Aryans first came to India, they called the land "ARYAVARTA", the land of the Aryans. The first king of India was Bharata, however some ancient scriptures state that Manu was the first king of Aryans.

 Type of Holy Books There are two types of religious books. One is called 'SMRITI'. It means a book which is passed down orally from one generation to another e.g. RIG VEDA and MANU SMRITI. The second type of book is called 'SHRUTI'. It means a holy book which was written down as soon the contents were revealed or dictated e.g. 'ARTHASHASTRA.' if you are interested in reading the Puranas in English, please log here....Puranas

 Rig Veda These are the oldest vedas and were composed around 2000 BC. These remained in oral form and were passed from one generation to another orally for nearly 1000 years and were put to writing around 1000 BC only.

 Vedas The Vedas (from VID or knowledge) are the most ancient surviving books of the human race. They represent the first outpourings of the human mind. They remain unique after all these centuries.There are four types of Vedas. Rig Veda is the oldest and has 10 mandalas (books), 1028 suktas (hymns or chapters) and 10,589 mantras (verses). It contains perfect knowledge which the sages wrote after life-long penance e.g. knowledge of science, matter of the universe like sun, moon, air body etc It is the Veda of knowledge of all subjects under the sun. Next comes the Yajurveda, meaning the scripture for yajnas or sacrifices. Most of its 1575 hymns are taken from the Rigveda; only 75 are original.Yajurveda gives knowledge of all the deeds and duties to be performed by men or women, students, leaders, king, agriculturist etc. The third, the Sama Veda, is the grand pioneering source of all systems of music and art. It also gives knowledge how to worship God, details of Yoga philosophy, qualities, supreme deeds and nature of the God is also given.Most of its 1875 stanzas are incorporated from the Rigveda. Only 75 verses are original.The last one, the Atharva Veda, got its name from seer Atharvan. It has 731 hymns, comprising 5,977 verses. About one-fifth are drawn from the Rigveda.One hymn of the Rigveda refers only to three Vedas. The Atharva Veda is therefore not recognised by some as a Veda. It contains magic, charms and description of thousands of herbs to cure diseases.

Upanishads Among the Hindu Scriptures, the Vedas hold the pre-eminent place. The Upanishads which are culled from the Aranyaka portions of the Vedas so-called because they were read in the Aranya (forest) after the learner had given up the life of the world are regarded as the Vedanta, or the end or final crown of the Vedas. There are in all 108 upanisads. The important ones are :-

• BRHADARANYAKA. This book mentions the doctorine of trans migration of soul. The concept of 'KARMA ' is also given in this book.
• CHANDAGYA.
• KATHA.
• ISA.
• SVETASVATARA.

  Gotras This term was first used in the book 'Atharva Veda'. It means 'a heard of cows', later it was used for clan. It was initially used by Brahmins and was later adopted by Kshytrias and Vasiyas. There were initially only seven gotras.These were Kasyap, Vasista, Bhrigu, Gautama, Bharadvaja, Atri and Agastasya. Later however others like Vishvamitra, Angrish and so on were added. 

SACRIFICES Animal Sacrifice formed an important part of Aryan religious rituals. Details of all such types of sacrifices which are to be done at home are given in"GRYHA SUTRAS." The main purpose was to provide gratification to GOD so that HE in turn helps them. Out of all the Gods Aryans worshiped, VARUN and RUDRA were considered of unpredictable nature, all the rest were considered good natured.

 Marriages As per vedas there are eight types of marriages. These are given in succeeding paras.

• Brahma Marriage

Once a boy completed his Brahmacharya (studenthood), his parents approached the parents of a girl belonging to a good family and ask them to give their daughter in marriage to their son. A marriage arranged in this manner is Brahma. In this the girl's family does not give any dowry in any form to the boy's family. There is no "commercial transaction" and the goal of a brahma marriage is the dharmic advancement of two families. Of the eight forms of marriage the dharma sastras regard this as the highest. The Brahma marriage sanctifies 21 generation i.e. a son born of such an union was said to rescue from hell, twenty-one generations of his ancestors on paternal and maternal side. This type of marriage is still prevalent amongst the Brahmins of Kumaon.

• Daiva Marriage

After waiting a reasonable period for a young man to turn up and ask for their daughter's hand. The parents of the girl, marry their daughter to a priest during a sacrifice is called daiva. This type of marriage is considered inferior to brahma. In the sastras womanhood is elevated in that it is the groom's family that has to seeking bride for their son. The Daiva sanctifies 14 generations i.e. a son born of a daivya marriage is said to rescue from hell fourteen generations of his ancestors on both his paternal & maternal side.

• Arsha Marriage

The third form, "arsha" suggests that it is concerned with the rishis, sages. In arsha the bride is given in exchange for two cows received from the groom. If the term is taken to mean "giving away a girl in marriage to a rishi", we must take it that the girl is married off to an old sage because the parents could not celebrate her marriage according to the brahma rite at the right time. The fact that cows are taken in exchange for the bride shows that the groom does not possess any remarkable qualities. According to the sastras, in marriages of noble kind there is no place for money or anything smacking of a business transaction. Compared to the previous two forms of marriage, a son born to such a marriage rescues a mere six generations of his ancestors from hell.

• Prajapatya Marriage

In prajapatya there is no trading and kanyadana is a part of it as in the brahma ceremony. The brahma type is a better type of marriage than prajapatya since, in that type of marriage the groom's parents go seeking a bride who is to be the Grahalaksmi of their household. Six generations is all that are rescued from a son born of a prajapatya marriage as well.

• Gandharva Marriage

Bridegroom and bride marry secretly, without the knowledge of their parents. This was considered inferior, because it was the result of lustful impulses. Sakuntala and Dusyanta got married in this way.The gandharva type is the "love marriage" which again has very enthusiastic support these days.

• Asura Marriage

In the asura type the groom is in no way a match for the girl but the bridegroom voluntarily gave lot of wealth to the bride's relatives as ‘bride money’. This was not in accordance with the injunctions of the scriptures because it was like buying the bride, which was prohibited in the scriptures.

• Rakshasa Marriage

In the raksasa form the groom battles with the girl's family, overcomes them takes their daughter away and then persuades her to marry. This was considered inferior. It was in this manner that Paramatman married Rukmini.

• Paishacha Marriage

The eighth and last is paishacha. In paishacha the girl's wish do not count, nor is any money or material given to her parents. Men would marry a woman, whom he had seduced while she was asleep, intoxicated or insane or is taken against her wish and her family antagonized. This was prohibited later.

 Sanskars There are fourty religious ceremonies which all hindus have to under go / perform in their life time, right from the time one is conceived, to the time which one dies. Most of these have been given in the Manu Smriti. However the 16 important ones ( also called Ṣoḍaśa Saṃskāra) which a Hindu  is required to perform are given below:-

•  Garbhadan : We all know life is conceived in the  mother’s womb. We all pray our children to be born healthy and lead a happy disease free life.  As per Ancient Indian Astrology  a baby which is conceived at an auspicious muhurat  will be a good and responsible human being. According to astrological principles the ideal time to get Garbhadan sanskar (pregnant) is the 4th and 16th lunar days after menstruation. Besides these lunar days, the 6th, 8th, 9th, 10th, 12th, 14th, Full Moon and New Moon days are also favorable for Garbhadan Sanskar.
•  Pumsavana   It literally means engendering a male issue. It is a ritual conducted in the third month of pregnancy. If it is the first pregnancy, it can be in the fourth month also. The pregnant woman consumes one bead of barley and two beads of black grain, along with a little curd. This is accompanied by chanting of slokas.
•  Jatakarma  This is ceremony conducted immediately after birth, in which the newborn`s tongue is touched thrice with ghee and approproate slokas are recited. Jata literally means `being brought into existence`. Karma means `action, special duty` and also refers to any religious rite. Jatakarma sanskara performed immediately after the birth of a child, even before the umbilical cord is severed.
•  Namararan Most of us are familiar with this ceremony. It is performed to name the child on the 12th day after birth.
•  Nishkramana   It is taking the child outside the house for the first time. The child is usually taken out into the open only in the fourth month after birth.
•  Annaprashana This ritual takes place when a child is six months old. This is the first time the child eats solid food, normally it is  a few grains of rice mixed with ghee.
•  Chudakarana  It is also known as choulam or mundana (tonsuring) is the ceremony of cutting child's hair for first time. In the child's third or fifth year, or any odd year the head is shaved, leaving behind a small tuft of hair.
•  Upanayana   It is the ceremony where a child is initiated as a full member as an adult by having his Yajñopaveetam. When Brahmins male child is done when he is eight years, kshytria, for vaishya it is 12 years. This is the day when the child is told about the gayatri mantra, a hymn from Rig Ved.
• Brahmachyara  This is the ceremony where  a child leaves his house for the Gurukul for studies.The ideal duration of studies was 12 years, though a student could leave the Gurukul after he had mastered one Ved only.
• Snataka  It was also called Snana, because bathing formed the most prominent item of the samskara. According to some anthropologists, bathing was meant for washing away divinity from the student. During his brahmacharya period he was living in divine contact and he himself had some divine halo round him. So, before he returned to the ordinary world, he had to put off divine influence, otherwise he would pollute divine attributes and thereby incur divine displeasure.  A student, who had completed his  studies, was regarded as a person who had crossed the ocean of learning. He was called a Vidyasnataka (one who has bathed in learning) and a Vratasnataka (one who has bathed in vows). Thus the ceremonial bath at the end of the student career symbolized the crossing of the ocean of learning by the student.
  . Samavartana or Home Coming Ceremony This sanskara was performed at the close of the brahmacharya period and it marked the termination of the student life. It was performed when a boy returned in his late teens after snataka from Gurukul .

• Grihastha Ashram The Ritual of marriage as per vedic rights.

• Vanaprastha   This  ceremony is done when a person gets old and leaves for the jungle (Van). he goes to live in the in a jungle as a hermit, with as little material possessions as possible. This stage denotes a transition phase from material to spiritual life. 

•  Sanyas  It is is traditionally taken by men or women over fifty or by young monks who wish to renounce worldly and materialistic pursuits and dedicate their lives to spiritual pursuits.
• Antyeshti  It is  sometimes referred to as Antim Sanskar,and is  the ritual associated with funeral.  The reason for leaving this rite out of other sanskars is that it is not considered as a pure and an auspicious rite, and it should therefore not be mentioned along with the other, pure, samskaras.
• Pind Daan  This is the offering of Pind or Rice Balls for 10 days after death. 
• Shradh Ceremony  This is performed each year. Shradh means to give with devotion or to offer one’s respect. Shraadh is a ritual for expressing one’s respectful feelings for the ancestors. According to Indian texts a soul has to wander about in the various worlds after death and has to suffer a lot due to past karmas. Shraadh is a means of alleviating this suffering.

Important Subjects studied in the Gurukul were:-

• Vedas. RIG VED, SHAM VED, YAJUR VED,  AND OTHER VED.
• Vedangas (Branchas of Vedas).

            Kalpa    - Performance of Sacrifices.

            Siksha   - Correct pronounation.

            Chandas- paragraphs from poetry and prose.

            Nikuta   - Interpretation of obscure words in Vedas.

            Vyakaran  - Grammer.

             Jyotish   - Astrology.

   
Rig Veda: The Book of Mantra is the oldest and has 1028 hymns. The Rig Veda accounts in detail the social, religious, political and economic background of the Rig-Vedic civilization. It was written around 2000 BC.

 Sham Veda: The Book of Songs  It is the next oldest. The Sham Veda is purely a liturgical collection of melodies (‘saman’). The hymns in the Sama Veda, used as musical notes, were almost completely drawn from the Rig Veda and have no distinctive lessons of their own. Hence, its text is a reduced version of the Rig Veda. As Vedic Scholars  put it, if the Rig Veda is the word, Sama Veda is the song or the meaning and if Rig Veda is the knowledge, Sama Veda is its realization.

Yajur Veda: The Book of Rituals These contain sacrificial formulas and instructions for priests to follow. It practically served as a guidebook for the priests.  There are no less than six complete recessions of Yajur Veda - Madyandina, Kanva, Taittiriya, Kathaka, Maitrayani and Kapishthala.

 Atharva Veda: The Book of Spell  The last of the Vedas, this is completely different from the other three Vedas and is next in importance to Rig-Veda with regard to history and sociology. Its hymns are of a more diverse character than the Rig Veda and are also simpler in language. They also contain magic spells. In fact, many scholars do not consider it part of the Vedas at all. The Atharva Veda consists of spells and charms prevalent at its time, and portrays a clearer picture of the Vedic society.

The Upanishads The Upanishads form the core of Indian philosophy. These were composed between 800 to 400 BC. They are an amazing collection of writings from original oral transmissions, which have been aptly described by Shri Aurobindo as "the supreme work of the Indian mind". It is here that we find all the fundamental teachings that are central to Hinduism — the concepts of 'karma' (action), 'samsara' (reincarnation), 'moksha' (nirvana), the 'atman' (soul), and the 'Brahman' (Absolute Almighty). They also set forth the prime Vedic doctrines of self-realization, yoga and meditation. Although there are more than 200 Upanishads, only thirteen have been identified out as presenting the core teachings. They are the Chandogya, Kena, Aitareya, Kaushitaki, Katha, Mundaka, Taittriyaka, Brihadaranyaka, Svetasvatara, Isa, Prasna, Mandukya and the Maitri Upanishads. The authors of the Upanishads were many, but they were not solely from the priestly caste. They were poets prone to flashes of spiritual wisdom, and their aim was to guide a few chosen pupils to the point of liberation, which they themselves had attained. According to some scholars, the main figure in the Upanishads is Yajnavalkya, the great sage who propounded the doctrine of 'neti-neti', the view that "truth can be found only through the negation of all thoughts about it". Other important Upanishadic sages are Uddalaka Aruni, Shwetaketu, Shandilya, Aitareya, Pippalada, Sanat Kumara.